


The Flower Keeper

by BadWigBrando



Category: Naruto
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-10
Updated: 2017-02-10
Packaged: 2018-09-23 05:42:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,002
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9643055
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BadWigBrando/pseuds/BadWigBrando
Summary: Kankuro visits a flower shop





	

The color green didn’t exist in Suna. The ground was brown, the sky was blue, the people were tanned and Gaara’s hair was surprisingly a very bright red. There was purple and gray and yellow. A lot of black, but no green. At least not a lot of it. The streets were barren of the color for as long as Kankuro could remember. There were occasional plants in people’s windows and front doors but no actual greenery.

This wasn’t a sad realization. He wasn’t angry or upset about this thought, more…neutral. More critical. He was simply an observer of the nature of his village. The last time he had been in Konoha, green practically fell from the sky. The vivid color bathed the entire village to the point where even the villagers seemed to be soaked through with the hue. It was vibrant. It was lively. It was slightly annoying, and it was missing from Suna.

Dust floated around his feet as Kankuro walk home in the late evening. The sun was barely set, the heat, as hot as usual, still blazing down on the back of his neck. His shoulders were sore, heavy with wooden machinery on his back. His face felt sweaty and sticky, eyes bleary from the heat. He was used to this feeling: exhaustion. It was common most days. He was a shinobi after all, so he walked with the weight on his back. He walked, feet kicking up dust, staining the black of his pants with a dusty brown. He walked until..he stopped.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw something. A color, a vibrant color. Turning his head to the left, he stared at the seemingly new shop at the corner of his street. He had never seen it before so they must have just opened. In the shop window were so many plants with so many colors. Pink, orange, blue, yellow, purple, and white, call surrounded by a blur of green. The color radiated from the store, making everything around it look dull and lifeless in comparison.

“What the…” he whispered to himself, taking a step towards the shop. He entered through the front, a high pitched bell ringing above his head. There was no one to answer the bell, from the front view, it looked like he was alone to wander.

“Oh, hello! Sorry, I was in the back!” A middle aged woman, probably around 45, power walked to the front counter to greet Kankuro. “I didn’t expect anyone to be here this late. I was just organizing. Can I help you with anything?”

The woman was petite, around 5 feet. Her hair was twisted into a messy bun, a twist of brown and grey. Kankuro looked her over once before returning his gaze to the hue covering the store.

“How long has this been here?”

“The shop? Why we just opened yesterday. The store’s been here forever but the plants didn’t arrive until a few days ago. We’re just starting up.”

“We?” Kankuro raised a brow. He stepped further into the store, stepping around plants of all types and shapes.

“Me and the plants,” she giggled. “Since we’re new, we don’t have much her around here. Luckily business is starting off slow but I’m hoping it will pick up. I know it will. And when it does, I’m going to need some extra hands!”  
“Uh-huh..” He was half listening. The plants had him mesmerized. “How many plants are in here?” He hadn’t seen so many flowers since he last made a trip to Konoha but even then, they weren’t all bunched together like this.

“A lot. Hey…” the lady tilted her head, eyes staring at the side of Kankuro’s face. “You wouldn’t happen to be interested in plants, would you? I’m sure a young man like you could use a job and it’s really not that much work.”

He stopped then, standing in the middle of the lush. His lips turned up into a smirk and he shook his head. “Heh, nah. I don’t need a job and I’m not interested in plants. This place just took me off guard. There’s not a lot of greenery in Suna. Its..shocking to be in here. Kinda surreal, heh”

The store woman laughed. “You’re right about that. Suna can be pretty barren but that’s what this shop is for. Its to change it a bit and add a bit of color to this place. Who doesn’t love color, right? And the flowers are so pretty, aren’t they?”

Kankuro made his way back to the front of the store and stopped at the counter. On the wooden surface was a small cactus, with a tiny flower on the top. He’s seen these in Suna before, mostly in Gaara’s bedroom and office. It made him smile.

“Yea, they are pretty nice. How much is this one?” he asked, pointing to the tiny cactus.

“This little thing? Hmm.” She looked at him. Kankuro looked at the cactus as if it were family. A content had fallen over his face, brining a new calm into the room that hadn’t been there before.

“Since this is our first day open and we haven’t had many customers, take it for free.”

Brow raised, Kankuro looked down at her. “You sure?” He didn’t reach for his wallet, no need to temp her into changing her mind.

“I’m sure. Take good care of it though. These plants can be the best of friends when you really need someone to just be there.” She picked up the small plant and handed it to him.

The pot was so small in Kankuro’s hands. “Thank you.” He nodded to her smile and exited the shop, tony cactus in hand. Blinking once, he turned his head back and looked at the shop again, just to be sure this wasn’t a dream.

“Huh…” Might as well go home. He walked a bit faster now, ready to add a bit more green to his life.

**Author's Note:**

> Please leave comment and kudos and shares with your friends!!
> 
> badwigbrando.tumblr.com


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